Christian Lindberg
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Christian Lindberg is, to date, the only person to have a successful career as a full-time international trombone soloist. Lindberg has premiered over 200 works, including over 70 new concerti.
Growing up in Stockholm, it was there that he learnt to play the baritone horn before taking up the trombone at the age of 17. By the age of 19 he had a professional position in the Stockholm Royal Opera Orchestra and at 20 he left the orchestral career behind to study to become a full-time soloist.
He initially worked with pianist and college friend Roland Pöntinen and local composer Jan Sandström. Early fame came with Sandström's notorius "Motorbike Concerto", which involves all the sounds of a motorbike from revving, gear changes, skidding, and a complete story told through the trombone.
Very early in his solo career he was heard by Robert von Bahr who owns the Swedish record label BIS. Initially commissioning him for an impressive three album deal to cover the most challenging music in the repertoire, Lindberg has gone on to produce over 60 solo CDs.
Lindberg's facility on the trombone is among the greatest on his instrument. For example, his performance of the solo violin part of Winter from Vivaldi's Four Seasons concerti requires amazing speed, accuracy, stamina, flexibility and range. By contrast, he brings his lyrical playing abilities to pieces such as "Julietta's Farewell" from his arrangement of Sergei Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet.
He is best known for his performance of avant-garde and other theatrical works, achieving a marvellous audience rapport. His repertoire includes Luciano Berio's Sequenza V, Sandström's Motorbike Concerto, Fredrik Högberg's "The Ballad of Kit Bones" and Su ba do be.
He has developed his tone in the German tradition of a thick, warm sound, often with a fast vibrato. This is the most striking difference between Lindberg's playing and the American and British virtuosi, who tend toward a more focused, free sound.
His compositional career began at the age of 39 after Sandström convinced Lindberg to try his hand at composition. His first-performed work was "Arabenne" for trombone and strings, recorded in 1997.
In 2000 he made his conducting debut with the Northern Sinfonia in the UK.
External links
- Christian Lindberg's official website (http://www.tarrodi.se/cl/)
- BIS Record label (http://www.bis.se/)
- Edition Tarrodi, publisher of Lindberg's compositions and arrangements (http://www.tarrodi.se/)